Oscars 2014: Spike Jonze on ‘Her’
Spike Jonze says his tale of a man who falls in love with the virtual voice in his computer is a peek into the future about “the challenges of intimacy.” After winning the original screenplay Oscar for “Her” on Sunday, he said he was hesitant to explain the film, adding: “I don’t think I could put it into a message. I could not reduce it to a sentence.”
“Her” is a somber, detached look at Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), who falls in love with Samantha (Scarlett Johansson), the voice in his computer operating system. It is at once a comment on the increasing reliance on the virtual world and how relationships between humans and technology may evolve in cyber-grid cities.
“We’re at this point in history,” said Jonze, who gave clipped answers in the press room Sunday night. “We’re 13 billion years into this universe” with billions more to come. He said the script came from an idea to write about artificial intelligence and love. He said there was a certain melancholy in today’s relationships. “There’s still a loneliness and longing. . .we’re still looking for connections.
“I don’t think I could have written this screenplay when I was younger. Now, I feel ready to write what’s in my heart.”
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